This invention relates to an assembly usable as a boat or as an accessory with sailboats and powerboats and may be employed for many purposes to add to the comfort, convenience and safety of the boating public. The assembly may also be used as a vehicle on land or ice.
It is known in the prior art to use the weight of water as a counterbalance or ballast in a sailboat. Furthermore, there are many different types of accessories which may be employed for different uses. For example, liquid storage tanks, portable showers, pontoons, lifting mechanisms, sea anchors and pitch and roll stabilizers are all available in the prior art. A boatsman who wishes to have the benefits of all these accessories must necessarily have the storage room available on board his boat. The presence of all these different types of accessories creates an obvious problem aboard whether the boat is at dock or underway. Therefore, it is likely that some of these items would not be placed on board by the boatsman. Consequently, it is very likely that safety risks would not be mitigated in any way and that some inconveniences would be suffered by the boatsman.
Where a boat is anchored offshore, it is necessary to have some sort of dinghy so that the boatsman may get back and forth between the shore and his boat. Until now, it was necessary for the boatsman to purchase an additional small boat which must be either placed on board or left anchored at the offshore location. When left at the offshore location, there is obviously no further use that may be attributed to such an accessory.
Finally, there is a marked increase in the number of people who are water sport enthusiasts. Consequently, there are many unskilled people participating in activities in this area. They are demanding equipment which will provide them both with fun and relaxation without their being exposed to a high safety risk. In addition, it is human nature to tire quickly of performing the same kind of activity again and again. In other words, people maintain their interest in certain activities when there is a variety of experiences opened to them. For example, the prior art now provides inflatable boats on which a motor or a sail may be placed for movement. Collapsible catamaran assemblies are available. Collapsible pontoon structures which may be inflated on location are also available in the prior art. These prior art structures provide a means for the consumer to have a fairly small investment and provide him with a highly transportable device for enjoying his water sports. However, each of these prior art assemblies provides only one type of activity. Until now, no construction has been available wherein the recreational enthusiast may also perform several different functions by effecting a simple mechanical manipulation thereto.